Then that means the people with fully paid phones are just screwed worse. No cellular company gives anything away. if you get a subsidized phone from any of them, they will eventually get back the cost of it from you. If you cancel service prior to the two years being up, they will charge you enough to more than cover the rest of what you owe on the phone. I realize they might not specifically state you are paying for the rest of the phone, but you are. You just are not paying the whole amount up front.